Method for controlling air conditioner system

ABSTRACT

A method for controlling an air conditioner system may include receiving, by one of an outdoor unit and a plurality of indoor units in a group, a command; transmitting, by the outdoor unit, a channel scan command to the plurality of indoor units; performing a channel scan by each of the outdoor unit and the plurality of indoor units; transmitting, by the plurality of indoor units, channel scan results to the outdoor unit; determining, by the outdoor unit, a channel to be used among a plurality of pre-set channels of a particular group based on a result of the channel scan performed by the outdoor unit and the channel scan results received from the plurality of indoor units; and outputting, by the outdoor unit, information on the channel to the plurality of indoor units. According to this method, an optimal wireless communication channel may be set.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application claims the priority benefit of Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2017-0126494, filed on Sep. 28, 2017 in the KoreanIntellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

An air conditioning system and a method for controlling an airconditioner system are disclosed herein.

2. Background

An air conditioner may provide a comfortable and pleasant indoorenvironment to humans by discharging cold air to a room to adjust anindoor temperature and purify air of the room. The air conditioner mayinclude an indoor unit including a heat exchanger or an indoor heatexchanger, which may be installed in a room. The air conditioner mayalso include an outdoor unit including a compressor and a heat exchangeror an outdoor heat exchanger, for example, and the outdoor unit maysupply a refrigerant to the indoor unit.

The air conditioner, in which the indoor unit and the outdoor unit areseparately controlled, may be operated by controlling power supplied tothe compressor or the heat exchangers. The outdoor unit and the indoorunit may be connected by a refrigerant pipe. Compressed refrigerant fromthe compressor of the outdoor unit may be supplied to the indoor heatexchanger through the refrigerant pipe. Heat-exchanged refrigerant inthe indoor heat exchanger may flow back into the compressor of theoutdoor unit through the refrigerant pipe. As a result, the indoor unitmay discharge the cold or hot air into the room via a heat exchangeusing the refrigerant.

Air conditioners may be interconnected between buildings orinterconnected in small groups. An air conditioner system or an airconditioning system may transmit and receive data, and monitor acondition of the corresponding air conditioners based on the transmittedand received data. Recently, more attempts have been made to providewireless communication between units, so there are increasing cases inwhich a wireless network is configured between not just units, such asan indoor unit, an outdoor unit, a controller, for example, but alsoother devices, such as a mobile terminal.

Due to wireless communication, it is possible to check information ofdevices and to control such devices without limiting the locations of auser and the devices. However, as the number of devices connected viawireless communication increases, communication quality may be degraded,communication speed may be reduced, and/or communication interferencemay increase unless an optimal communication channel configuration ismade. Thus, there is need of a method of allowing wirelessly connectedunits or devices to set an optimal communication channel.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the followingdrawings in which like reference numerals refer to like elements, andwherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration in whichan air conditioner system according to an embodiment is installed in abuilding;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an air conditionersystem according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 3A-3B are diagrams explaining communication in an air conditionersystem according to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating control of aconfiguration of units or devices in an air conditioner system accordingto an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is an inner block diagram schematically illustrating a mobileterminal according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram explaining an air conditioner system according to anembodiment;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an outdoorunit according to an embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an indoorunit according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment;

FIGS. 10A-10B are diagrams illustrating a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment;

FIG. 11A is a diagram explaining a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment;

FIG. 11B is a diagram explaining a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment; and

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of an auto address settingmethod of an air conditioner system according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, embodiments disclosed herein will be described withreference to the accompanying drawings. While embodiments will bedescribed, it should be understood that the description is not intendedto limit the embodiments to the exemplary embodiments. In the drawings,in order to clearly and briefly describe the embodiments, componentswhich are not related to the description will be omitted, and likereference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

In the following description, with respect to constituent elements usedin the following description, the suffixes “module” and “unit” are usedor combined with each other only in consideration of ease in thepreparation of the specification, and do not have or serve as differentmeanings. Accordingly, the suffixes “module” and “unit” may beinterchanged with each other. The word “unit” may also refer to a deviceor an assembly.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration in whichan air conditioner system according to an embodiment is installed in abuilding. Referring to FIG. 1, an air conditioner system may include anoutdoor unit 10, an indoor unit 20, and a controller 50. In addition tothe indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10, the air conditioner systemmay include a ventilator, an air purifier, a humidifier, or a heater,for example, and may further include other units or devices, such as achiller, an air conditioning unit, and a cooling tower, depending on asize of the air conditioner system. In addition, the air conditionersystem may be operatively connected to a mobile device, a securitydevice, or an alarm device, for example located in the building.

The controller 50 may control an operation of the indoor unit 20 and theoutdoor unit 10 in accordance with an input user command, mayperiodically receive and store data of corresponding operation states ofthe indoor unit and the outdoor unit, and may output the operationstates through a monitor screen. The controller 50 may perform operationsetting, lock setting, schedule control, group control, peak controlregarding power consumption, or demand control, for example, of theindoor unit 20.

The outdoor unit 10 may be connected to the indoor unit 20 to supplyrefrigerant to the indoor unit 20. In addition, the outdoor unit 10 mayperiodically communicate with a plurality of indoor units 20 such thatthe outdoor unit 10 may transmit and/or receive data with respect to theplurality of indoor units 20, and may change an operation based on anoperating setting changed through an indoor unit.

The indoor unit 20 may include an electronic expansion valve thatexpands refrigerant supplied from the outdoor unit 10, an indoor heatexchanger that heat-exchanges refrigerant, an indoor unit fan or indoorfan, a plurality of sensors, and a control means or indoor controllerthat controls an operation of the indoor unit. The indoor fan may allowindoor air to flow into the indoor heat exchanger and may allowheat-exchanged air to be exposed to an indoor room or an interior of abuilding

The indoor unit 20 may further include a discharge port or outlet thatdischarges the heat-exchanged air. The discharge port may be providedwith a wind direction adjusting means, vane, louver, or vent that mayclose the discharge port and control a direction of the discharged air.The indoor unit 20 may control the rotating speed of the indoor fan,thereby controlling intake air and air to be discharged and controllingan air flow rate. The indoor unit 20 may further include an output unit,output, or display that displays an operation state and setting data orinput data of the indoor unit, and an input unit or input where a usermay input the setting data or the input data. The indoor unit 20 maytransmit the input data regarding air conditioner operation to a remotecontroller connected thereto, output the input data via the remotecontroller, and receive data.

The remote controller may be connected to the indoor unit via wiredcommunication or wireless communication to input a user command to theindoor unit, receive data of the indoor unit, and output the receiveddata. According to a method of connection with the indoor unit, theremote controller may transmit the user command to the indoor unit andperform one-directional communication in which data on the indoor unitis not received, or perform bidirectional communication in which data isboth transmitted and received with respect to the indoor unit.

The outdoor unit 10 may operate in a cooling mode or a heating mode inresponse to data received from the indoor unit 20 or a control commandreceived from the controller, and may supply refrigerant to the indoorunit. In the presence of a plurality of outdoor units, each outdoor unitmay be connected to a plurality of indoor units, and the plurality ofindoor units may supply refrigerant to the plurality of indoor units viaa distributor.

The outdoor unit 10 may include at least one compressor that compressesthe refrigerant and discharges a pressurized gas refrigerant, anaccumulator that separates gas refrigerant and liquid refrigerant fromthe refrigerant to prevent non-vaporized liquid refrigerant fromentering the compressor, an oil collection unit or an oil collector thatcollects oil from the refrigerant discharged from the compressor, anoutdoor heat exchanger that condensed or evaporates the refrigerant viaheat exchange with the outside air, an outdoor unit fan or outdoor fan,a four-way valve that changes the refrigerant flow path according to anoperation mode of the outdoor unit, at least one pressure sensor thatmeasures pressure, at least one temperature sensor that measurestemperature, and a control unit or outdoor controller that controls anoperation of the outdoor unit and communicates with other units ordevices. The outdoor fan may introduce air into the outdoor heatexchanger in order to facilitate the heat exchange of the outdoor heatexchanger, and may discharge the heat-exchanged air to an outside of theair conditioner. The outdoor unit 10 may further include a plurality ofsensors, valves, and super-coolers, for example, but description thereofmay be omitted below.

In addition, the air conditioner system may transmit and receive datawith respect to another air conditioner via a network connection such asthe Internet. An air conditioner may access an external service center,a management server, or a database, for example, via the controller, andmay communicate with an external terminal via a network. The terminalmay access at least one unit or device in the air conditioner system,and monitor and control an operation of the air conditioner system as asecond controller.

In addition, the outdoor unit 10, the indoor unit 20, and the controller50 may wirelessly communicate directly with each other via apredetermined wireless communication method, and the outdoor unit 10,the indoor unit 20, and the controller 50 may wirelessly communicatedirectly with a mobile terminal 200 via the predetermined wirelesscommunication method. A user may therefore be able to convenientlymonitor a state of each unit or device using the mobile terminal 200,and control each unit. That is, the user may control the outdoor unit10, the indoor unit 20, and/or the controller 50 via the mobile terminal200.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a configuration of an air conditionersystem according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 2, an indoor unit20, an outdoor unit 10, and a controller 50 may transmit and receivedata via a wireless communication method in the air conditioner system.The indoor unit 20 may include a plurality of indoor units 20. Theplurality of indoor units 20 may include first indoor unit 21, secondindoor unit 22, and third indoor unit 23, for example. The plurality ofindoor units 20 may further include fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh,eighth, and ninth indoor units 24-29, for example. The outdoor unit 10may include a plurality of outdoor units 10. The plurality of outdoorunits 10 may include first outdoor unit 11, second outdoor unit 12, andthird outdoor unit 13, for example. The plurality of outdoor units 10may be connected to the plurality of indoor units 20 via refrigerantpipes P1, P2, and P3, and may transmit and receive data with respect tothe plurality of indoor units 20 via a wireless communication method.Each outdoor unit of the plurality of outdoor units 10 may communicatewith a plurality of indoor units 20. For example, first outdoor unit 11may communicate with first, second, and third indoor units 21, 22, and23 in the plurality of indoor units 20.

By periodically or repeatedly communicating with the plurality of indoorunits 20, the plurality of outdoor units 10 may transmit and receivedata with respect to the indoor units 20 and change an operationaccording to a change of operation setting or operation input of theindoor units 20. The plurality of outdoor units 10 and the plurality ofindoor units 20 may transmit and receive data via a wirelesscommunication method.

The plurality of indoor units 20 may communicate with the outdoor units10, and also may communicate with the controller 50 via a wirelesscommunication method. The first outdoor unit 11 may be connected to thefirst, second, and third indoor units 21, 22, and 23 via a firstrefrigerant pipe P1; the second outdoor unit 12 may be connected to thefourth, fifth, and sixth indoor units 24, 25, and 26 via a secondrefrigerant pipe P2; and the third outdoor unit 13 may be connected tothe seventh, eighth, and ninth indoor units 27, 28, and 29 via a thirdrefrigerant pipe P3. Each outdoor unit of the plurality of outdoor units10 may be described as being connected to three indoor units of theplurality of indoor units 20, but it is merely exemplary and there is nolimitation on the number or shape of indoor units. That is, the first,second, and third outdoor units 11, 12, and 13 may each be connected tomore than three indoor units in the plurality of indoor units 20.

Refrigerant may be supplied to the first, second, and third indoor units21, 22, and 23 from the first outdoor unit 11 upon operation of thefirst outdoor unit 11; refrigerant may be supplied to the fourth, fifth,and sixth indoor units 24, 25, and 26 via the second refrigerant pipe P2from the second outdoor unit 12 upon operation of the second outdoorunit 12; and refrigerant may be supplied to the seventh, eighth, andninth indoor units 27, 28, and 29 from the third outdoor unit 13 via thethird refrigerant pipe P3 upon operation of the third outdoor unit 13.

Air conditioners may be grouped by an outdoor unit of the plurality ofoutdoor units 10, and each group of air conditioners may communicateusing a different channel. An indoor unit in the plurality of indoorunits 20 may perform a heat exchange using refrigerant supplied from anoutdoor unit in the plurality of outdoor units 10 and may discharge coldor hot air, and thus, the indoor units of the plurality of indoor units20 and the outdoor units of the plurality of outdoor units 10 connectedvia a refrigerant pipe may be set as one group.

For example, the first outdoor unit 11 may form a first group with thefirst, second, and third indoor units 21, 22, and 23 connected theretovia the first refrigerant pipe P1; the second outdoor unit 12 may form asecond group with the fourth, fifth, and sixth indoor units 24, 25, and26 connected thereto via the second refrigerant pipe P2; and the thirdoutdoor unit 13 may form a third group with the seventh, eighth, andninth indoor units 27, 28, and 29 connected thereto via the thirdrefrigerant pipe P3. An outdoor unit of the plurality of outdoor units10 and a controller 50 may form a group according to where they areinstalled. A state of connection via a refrigerant pipe, such as first,second, or third refrigerant pipes P1, P2, or P3, may be distinguishedbased on whether there is a change in temperature of an indoor unit inthe plurality of indoor units 20 via a supply of refrigerant from anoutdoor unit in the plurality of outdoor units 10 when the outdoor unitand the indoor unit are operated.

The controller 50 may communicate with the plurality of indoor units 20or the plurality of outdoor units 10, regardless of a group. Thecontroller 50 may control an operation of the plurality of indoor units20 and the plurality of outdoor units 10. In response to an input usercommand, the controller 50 may periodically receive and store data of acorresponding operation of the plurality of indoor units 20 and theplurality of outdoor units 10, and may output an operation state througha monitor screen.

The controller 50 may be connected to the plurality of indoor units 20to perform operation setting, lock setting, schedule control, groupcontrol, peak control regarding power consumption, demand control, forexample. In addition, by communicating with the plurality of outdoorunits 10, the controller 50 may control the plurality of outdoor units10 and may monitor an operation of the plurality of outdoor units 10.

In the case where the controller 50 may be implemented as a plurality ofcontrollers, the plurality of controllers 50 may transmit and receivedata with each other through mutual wireless communication and may beconnected to an external controller via a predetermined network. When acontroller 50 and a plurality of indoor units 20 and a plurality ofoutdoor units 10 transmit and receive data by a wireless communicationmethod, addresses or address information necessary for the communicationmay stored in the controller 50 and each unit of the plurality of indoorand outdoor units 20 and 10. Each address may be allocated by an outdoorunit of the plurality of outdoor units 10 and the controller 50.

An outdoor unit of the plurality of outdoor units 10 may be grouped witha plurality of indoor units 20 connected thereto via a refrigerant pipe,such as first, second, or third refrigerant pipes P1, P2, or P3. In thiscase, addresses may be allocated to the outdoor unit of the plurality ofoutdoor units 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 belonging to thesame group of the outdoor unit. In addition, even though a group is setwith reference to one outdoor unit in the plurality of outdoor units 10,communication may be possible between every outdoor unit of theplurality of outdoor units 10 and every indoor unit of the plurality ofindoor units 20. Accordingly, the controller 50 may allocate addressesto centrally control the outdoor and indoor units 10, 20 and to provideaddresses for communication on a group basis. In some cases, thecontroller 50 may use the addresses allocated to an outdoor unit of theplurality of outdoor units 10 and indoor units of the plurality ofindoor units 20 as addresses used in the central control, withoutallocating additional addresses. Each unit or device of the airconditioner system, such as the outdoor units of the plurality ofoutdoor units 10, the indoor units of the plurality of indoor units 20,and the controller 50 may wirelessly communicate with a mobile terminal200.

Referring to FIG. 2, the air conditioner system according to anexemplary embodiment may further include the mobile terminal 200, whichis enabled or configured to check a condition of an electronic device,such as the outdoor units of the plurality of outdoor units 10, theindoor units of the plurality of indoor units 20, and the controller 50,and a condition of an electronic device in the system. The mobileterminal 200 may be provided to control the air conditioner system, andto check and control a state of the air conditioner system by executingan application provided with or installed on the mobile terminal 200.The mobile terminal 200 may be, for example, a smart phone 200 aembedded with an application for the air conditioner system, a laptop200 b, or a tablet or PC 200 c, for example.

FIGS. 3A-3B are diagrams illustrating communication in an airconditioner system according to an embodiment. FIG. 3A showscommunication between and among units using wired communication, andFIG. 3B shows communication between and among units using wirelesscommunication.

Referring to FIG. 3A, a plurality of units or devices (including devicessuch as a controller 50, an outdoor unit or a plurality of outdoor units10, an indoor unit or a plurality of indoor units 20, and/or a mobileterminal 200) in the air conditioner system may be connected viacommunication lines or wires. As there is a limitation in a connectionof the communication lines, the plurality of units or devices may not beconnected one by one, but may be connected in phases according to ashape or a connected shape of the communication lines.

A plurality of indoor units 20 may be connected to one outdoor unit 10,via a communication line, and the outdoor unit 10 may be connected tothe controller 50. When there is a plurality of outdoor units 10, theplurality of indoor units 20 may be connected to the plurality ofoutdoor units 10 with reference to a connected state of a refrigerantpipe, such as first, second, and third refrigerant pipes P1, P2, or P3.The plurality of outdoor units 10 may be connected to the controller 50.

An indoor unit or a plurality of indoor units 20 may transmit data to anoutdoor unit or a plurality of outdoor units 10, and an outdoor unit orthe plurality of outdoor units 20 may transmit its own data and the datareceived from the indoor unit or the plurality of indoor units 20 to thecontroller 50. The controller 50 may check an operation state of theindoor unit or the plurality of indoor units 20 based on data receivedfrom the outdoor unit or the plurality of outdoor units 10.

In the case where the controller 50 transmits a control command to anindoor unit 20, the controller 50 may transmit the control command to anoutdoor unit 10 connected to the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10may transmit the received control command to the indoor unit 20. Assuch, when wired communication, units or devices in a plurality of unitsor devices may not be connected one by one (that is, each device doesnot connect to each and every other device in the plurality of units),so data may be transmitted in phases according to a connection state ofthe communication lines.

Accordingly, as data of an indoor unit 20 may not able to be transmitteddirectly, there may be a time delay in transmission of the data. Inaddition, as an outdoor unit 10 may need to process data on another unitor device, the load may be increased. Further, as one outdoor unit 10may need to process data of a plurality of indoor units 20, it may takea long time to transmit data depending on the number of indoor units inthe plurality of indoor units 20 connected to the outdoor unit 10.

In addition, even when a state of units or devices are monitored usingthe mobile terminal 200, data of an indoor unit 20 may not able to betransmitted directly and thus the data may be transmitted and receivedvia the controller 50. The mobile terminal 200 may not be capable offreely communicating with each unit or device of the air conditionersystem, and may need to receive, from a particular unit, onlyinformation about that particular unit and may need to communicate withthe controller 50 of an upper layer in order to obtain wholeinformation.

As shown in FIG. 3B, an outdoor unit or a plurality of outdoor units 10,an indoor unit or a plurality of indoor units 20, a controller 50, and amobile terminal 200 may transmit and receives data with respect to eachother via a wireless communication method. The controller 50 and/or themobile terminal 200 may request data from each of the outdoor unit 10 orplurality of outdoor units 10 and the indoor unit 20, and may determinean operation state or abnormality of each unit based on data receivedfrom each of the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20. That is, eachunit or device may connect to each and every other unit or device in theplurality of units.

Grouping an outdoor unit 10 and an indoor unit 20 in consideration of aflow of refrigerant has been described, but a communication channelincluding the controller 50, the outdoor unit 10, and the indoor unit 20may be set separately from a communication channel between the outdoorunit 10 and the indoor unit 20. The controller 50 and/or the mobileterminal 200 may change an operation setting of the indoor unit 20 basedon data received from the indoor unit 20 according to a condition (suchas temperature or humidity) of an indoor space where the indoor unit 20is installed, and may transmit data based on the change of the operationsetting directly to the indoor unit 20. When the operation setting ischanged, the indoor unit 20 may transmit data corresponding to thechange of the operation setting to the outdoor unit 10, and so operationof the outdoor unit 10 is changed as well.

When the indoor unit 20 is scheduled to operate at a preset orpredetermined time, the controller 50 may transmit an operation commandto the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 connected thereto, and theindoor unit 20 may transmit a response to the operation command to thecontroller 50 and transmit data on an operation state thereof at apredetermined interval or a predetermined time interval. In response todata received through an input unit or data received from the controller50, the indoor unit 20 may set an operation and may transmits data tothe outdoor unit 10. The outdoor unit 10 may control a compressor bycalculating a load according to the data received from the indoor unit20 and according to an operation state of a plurality of indoor units20. The outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20 may transmit data to thecontroller 50 at the predetermined time interval, and may also transmiterror or abnormality-related data to the controller 50 in response to anoccurrence of an error or an abnormality, regardless of a cycle.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically illustrating control of aconfiguration of units or devices in an air conditioner system accordingto an embodiment. The air conditioner system may include an electronicdevice 100. The electronic device 100 may be one of an indoor unit 20,an outdoor unit 10, a controller 50, and a wireless sensor in an airconditioner system. Referring to FIG. 4, the electronic device 100 inthe air conditioner system may include a driver or drive 140, a sensingunit, sensing assembly, or sensor 170, an output unit, output, ordisplay 160, an input unit or input 150, a storage unit, storage, ormemory 130, and a controller 110 that controls an overall operation.

In addition, the electronic device 100 may be provided with a wirelesscommunication module 120 or may be connected to the wirelesscommunication module 120. The wireless communication module 120 may beembedded in the electronic device 100 or installed outside theelectronic device 100.

An additional component may be added depending on characteristics of aproduct. For example, the outdoor unit 10 may include a compressor, anoutdoor unit fan or outdoor fan, and a plurality of valves. Accordingly,drivers of the outdoor unit may be classified into a compressor driver,an outdoor unit fan driver or outdoor fan driver, and a valve controlleror an outdoor valve controller.

The indoor unit 20 may be provided with a louver or a vane as a winddirection adjusting means, and may be provided with an indoor unit fandriver or indoor fan, a valve controller or an indoor valve controller,a wind direction controller, and a plurality of valves. In addition, atype, number, and installation positions of sensors included in thesensing assembly 170 may vary depending on a type of a unit.

The storage 130 may store control data that controls an operation of theelectronic device 100, communication data that sets an address necessaryto communicate with another electronic device 100 or necessary to set agroup, data transmitted and received with respect to an outside of theair conditioner system, and operation data generated or sensed during anoperation. The storage 130 may store an execution program of eachfunction of the electronic device 100, data used in operation control,and transmitted and received data.

The storage 130 may be implemented in a hardware manner as a variety ofstorage devices such as ROM, RAM, EPROM, flash drive, and hard drive,for example. The input 150 may include at least one input means or oneinput interface, such as a button, a switch, and/or a touch input ortouch input means. When a user command or predetermined data is input orentered via the input means or input interface, the input 150 maytransmit the input data to the controller 110. The outdoor unit 10 maybe provided with a test run key and an address setting key, and theindoor unit may be provided with a power key, a menu input key, anoperation setting key, a temperature adjusting key, a wind power key, ora lock key, for example.

The output unit 160 may include at least one of a lamp or light which iscontrolled to be turned on or blink, an audio output unit or audiooutput provided with a speaker to output or play predetermined sound, ora display so as to output an operation state of the electronic device100. The light indicates whether the electronic device 100 is inoperation depending on whether the light is turned on, the color of thelight emitted, or whether the light is blinking, and the speaker mayoutput an operation state via a predetermined alarm sound or effectsound. The display may output a menu screen to control the electronicdevice 100, and may also output a guidance message or an alarm relatedto an operation setting or an operation state of the electronic device100, wherein the guidance message or the alarm is composed of acombination of at least one of a text, a number, or an image.

The sensing assembly 170 may include a plurality of sensors. The sensingassembly 170 may include a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, a gassensor, a humidity sensor, and/or a flow sensor. For example, aplurality of temperature sensors may be provided to sense an indoortemperature, an outdoor temperature, a temperature of an indoorheat-exchanger, a temperature of an outdoor heat-exchanger, and/or apipe temperature, and the plurality of temperature sensors may inputsensed values to the controller 110. The pressure sensor may beinstalled at an inlet port or inlet and an outlet port or outlet of arefrigerant pipe, may measure pressure of flowing refrigerant andpressure of discharged refrigerant, and may input measurements or senseddata to the controller 110. The pressure sensor may be installed notjust in the refrigerant pipe, but also in a water pipe.

The driver 140 may supply a power or an operation power to a controltarget in accordance with a control command of the controller 110, andmay control a driving of the control target. As described above, when anoutdoor unit, the driver 140 may be provided as a compressor driver, anoutdoor unit fan or outdoor fan driver, and/or a value controller thatcontrols a compressor, an outdoor fan, and a valve, respectively. Thedriver 140 may apply the operation power to motors provided in thecompressor, the outdoor fan, and the valve, for example, so that presetoperations may be performed upon operation of the motors.

The wireless communication module 120 may support at least one or morewireless communication methods, and may communicate with another unit inaccordance with a control command of the controller 110. The wirelesscommunication module 120 may allow the controller 110, the outdoor unit10, and the indoor unit 20 to transmit and receive data with respect toeach other via a preset wireless communication method, and may transmitreceived data to the controller 110.

The wireless communication module 120 may set an address forcommunication between units, may transform data to be transmitted andreceived, and may process a signal. Upon operation of the electronicdevice 100, the wireless communication module 120 may search for anotherunit or another electronic device in the same frequency band throughwireless communication, and may verify connection to that unit. Thewireless communication module 120 may communicate by allocating atemporary address for an initial operation or by setting a receivedtemporary address. When setting an address in response to a controlcommand of the controller 110, the wireless communication module 120 mayrequest a product number from the controller 110 and set an addressbased on the product number. The product number may be a unique number,a serial number, a Media Access Control (MAC) address, or the like ofthat other unit.

The controller 110 may control data to be input and output through theinput 150 and the output 160, may manage data stored in the storage 130,and may control a transmission and a reception of data through thewireless communication module 120. The controller 110 may sense aconnection state and a communication state of the wireless communicationmodule 120 through a connection unit, and may determine an error.

The controller 110 may generate a control command to operate inaccordance with a request from another unit, another electronic device,or a set operation setting, and may transmit the control command to thedriver 140. Accordingly, the driver 140 may control a componentconnected thereto; for example, a compressor, an output unit fan oroutput fan, a valve, an indoor fan, and/or a wind direction adjustingmeans, vane, or louver to operate.

While the electronic device 100 is in operation, the controller 110 maydetermine an operation state of the electronic device 100 based on datareceived from a plurality of sensors of the sensing unit 170, and mayoutput an error. The wireless communication module 120 may be providedinside the electronic device 100 or may be connected to the electronicdevice 100 via a connection unit. The wireless communication module 120may receive data of the electronic device 100 via the connection unit,and may transmit received data to the electronic device 100.

The wireless communication module 120 may wirelessly communicate using asub-GHz frequency band so that communication is enabled despite thepresence of a wall, a floor, or an obstacle, for example, in a building.The sub-GHz frequency band has excellent transmission and rotationcharacteristics, and thus may be less attenuated in response to a wallor an inter-floor object. Thus, the wireless communication module 120may be efficiently communicate within an air conditioner system providedwith a plurality of units in a building partitioned by walls.

The wireless communication module 120 may communicate using one of 400MHz or 900 MHz, which are unlicensed bands available for a lower powerwireless station in Sub-GHZ bands. The wireless communication module 120may selectively use 400 MHz and/or 900 MHz in response to a standardwhich is different depending on a region or country. In addition, thewireless communication module 120 may further include a Zigbee module, aBluetooth module, an NFC module, and any other communication modulewhich is or includes a short-range communication technology.

The wireless communication module 120 may include a plurality ofcommunication modules, so the same communication module or differentcommunication modules may be used in communication between an outdoorunit 10 and another indoor unit 20, communication with a remotecontroller, and/or communication with the controller 110. The wirelesscommunication module 120 may communicate via a different communicationmethod according to a target to communicate, by selectively changing thecommunication method in response to the target to communicate.

When different channels are used in communication with an indoor unit 20and communication with a controller 110, the wireless communicationmodule 120 may transmit and receive data by setting a different channelaccording to a target to communicate. According to the Korean radio waveact, over a frequency band of 400 MHz or 900 MHx, there are 21 channelsbetween 424.7 MHz and 424.95 MHz and 11 channels between 447.8625 MHzand 447.9875 MHz for radio equipment of a predetermined low-powerwireless station used for data transmission, and 32 channels between 917MHz and 923.5 MHz for radio equipment of RFID/USN. Thus, communicationmay be performed using the above channels.

Unlicensed frequency bands used in countries are as below: 902-928 MHz(FCC Part 15.247) in North and South America; 433 MHz, 915 MHz, and863-868 MHz (ETSIEN300220) in Europe; 920-928 MHz (ARIB STD-T108) inJapan; 920 MHz in China; 424-447 MHz and 917-923.5 MHz (KC) in SouthKorea; 865-867 MHz (G.S.R 564(E)) in India; 433 MHZ and 915 MHZ inAustralia; and 433 MHz in South Africa. Across the world, 2.4 GHz and5.72 GHz are commonly available. In addition, if 902-928 MHz is used inNorth and South America, 863-868 MHz in Europe, 920-928 MHz in Japan,917-923.5 MHz in South Korea, 865-867 MHz in India, and 2.74 GHz/5.72GHz commonly across the word, communication may be possible at 50 kbpsor faster.

As an obstacle such as a wall between floors and furniture may exist ina building, a frequency band which allows signal to pass through such anobstacle and reach a predetermined distance or more may be used. Amongsub-GHz bands, the Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band (100MHz, 20 MHz, 400 MHz, 900 MHz) in Sub-GHz bands has an excellentpenetration ability in a building and thus enables inter-floorcommunication. A length of an antenna may depend on a transmittingfrequency band, and, since 100 MHz and 200 MHz requires a long antennalength, there may be a restriction in antenna installation. Therefore,the wireless communication module 120 may be configured to communicateusing a frequency band of 400 MHz or 900 MHz out of the aforementionedfrequency bands.

FIG. 5 is an inner block diagram schematically illustrating a mobileterminal according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 5, a mobileterminal 200 may include a wireless communication unit or a wirelesscommunication assembly 210, an Audio/video (A/V) input unit or an A/Vinput 220, a user input unit or user input 230, a sensing unit or sensor240, an output unit or output 250, a memory or storage 260, an interfaceunit or interface 270, a controller 280, and a power supply unit orpower supply 290.

The mobile terminal 200 according an embodiment may include a wirelesscommunication module 300 that wirelessly communicates with a pluralityof electronic devices or an electronic device 100. The wirelesscommunication module 300 may be configured as one block of the wirelesscommunication assembly 210.

The wireless communication module 300, which supports wirelesscommunication in a sub-GHz band, may be used to wireless communicatewith each electronic device 100 included in the air conditioner systemusing a sub-GHz band. Not all of the common mobile terminals 200 may beembedded with the wireless communication module 300 supporting sub-GHzband wireless communication, so a dedicated wireless communicationmodule 300 may be used to create a connection.

The wireless communication module 300 may be connected via the interface270 or via the wireless communication assembly 210. The wirelesscommunication assembly 210 may include a broadcast receiving module orbroadcast receiver 211, a mobile communication module 213, a wirelessinternet module 215, a short-range communication module 217, and alocation information module or location module such as a Global PositionSystem (GPS) module 219.

The broadcast receiver 211 may receive at least one of a broadcastsignal or broadcast-related information from an external broadcastmanagement server via a broadcast channel. The broadcast channel mayinclude a satellite channel or a terrestrial channel, for example. Thebroadcast signal and/or the broadcast-related information receivedthrough the broadcast receiver 211 may be stored in the memory 260.

The mobile communication module 213 may transmit and receive a radiosignal with respect to at least one of a base station, an externalterminal, or a server on a mobile communication network. The radiosignal may include a voice call signal, a video call signal, and/orvarious types of data according to transmission and reception of textand/or multimedia message.

The wireless internet module 215 may refer to a module or device thatenables or allows wireless Internet access. The wireless internet module215 may be embedded in or may be external to the mobile terminal 200.For example, the wireless internet module 215 may perform a Wi-Fi-basedwireless communication or a Wi-Fi Direct-based wireless communication.

The short-range communication module 217 may refer to a module thatenables or allows a local area communication, and that may supportshort-range communication using at least one of the following:Bluetooth™, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Infrared DataAssociation (IrDA), Ultra Wideband (UWB), and ZigBee. The short-rangecommunication module 217 may support wireless communication between themobile terminal 200 and a wireless communication system, wirelesscommunication between the mobile terminal 200 and another mobileterminal 200, wireless communication between the mobile terminal and adifferent mobile terminal, or wireless communication between the mobileterminal 200 and a network in which an external server is located viashort-range wireless area networks.

The GPS or location module 219 may receive position information from aplurality of GPS satellites. The wireless communication assembly 210 mayexchange data with a server using one or more communication modules. Thewireless communication assembly 210 may include an antenna 205 allowingwireless communication, and may include an antenna that receives abroadcast signal in addition to an antenna that makes a call.

The A/V input 220 may be related to or may receive an audio signal or avideo signal, and may include a camera 221 and a microphone 223. Theuser input 230 may generate key input data that is input by a user tocontrol an operation of the mobile terminal 200. The user input 230 maybe in the form of a key pad, a dome switch, or a touch pad (staticpressure/electrostatic), for example. In particular, if a touch padforms an inter-layered structure with a display unit or display 251, thestructure may refer to a touch screen.

The sensing assembly 240 may generate a sensing signal that controls theoperation of the mobile terminal 200. The sensing assembly 250 may sensea current state of the mobile terminal 200; for example, the sensingassembly 250 may sense an opened/closed state of the mobile terminal200, a position of the mobile terminal 200, and/or a user's contact.

The sensing assembly 240 may include a proximity sensor 241, a pressuresensor 243, and a motion sensor 245, for example. The motion sensor 245may sense movement or a position of the mobile terminal 200 using anaccelerometer, a gyro sensor, or a gravity sensor, for example. Inparticular, the gyro sensor may be a sensor that measures an angularvelocity. The gyro sensor may be able to sense a direction or an angleof rotation against a reference direction.

The output 250 may include the display 251, a sound output module or aspeaker 253, an alarm unit or alarm 255, or a haptic module orkinesthetic communication module 257, for example. The display 251 maypresent or display information processed in the mobile terminal 200.When the display 251 forms an inter-layered structure with a touch padto implement a touch screen, the display 251 may be used as both anoutput device and an input device to which information may be input by auser's touch. The speaker or sound output module 253 may output audiodata received from the wireless communication assembly 210 or stored inthe memory 260. The sound output module 253 may include a speaker or abuzzer, for example.

The alarm 255 may output a signal that notifies occurrence of an eventin the mobile terminal 200. For example, the alarm 255 may output asignal in the form of vibration, or the alarm 255 may output a signalthat controls the haptic module 257 to generate a tactile effect. Thehaptic module 257 may generate various tactile effects that a user canfeel, such as vibrations. The memory 260 may store a program thatprocesses and controls the controller 280, or may temporarily storeinput and output data (for example, a phone book, messages, stillimages, or videos).

The interface 270 may serve or act as a channel with all externaldevices connected to the mobile terminal 200. The interface 270 mayreceive data or power from an external device and transfers the receiveddata or power to each element, unit, or device of the mobile terminal200 or allow internal data of the mobile terminal 200 to be transmittedto an external device.

The controller 280 may control an overall operation of the mobileterminal 200 by controlling operations of each of the aforementionedelements, units, or devices of the mobile terminal 200. For example, thecontroller 280 may control or process a voice call, data communication,and a video call. In addition, the controller 280 may be provided with amultimedia playback module or a multimedia player 281 that playsmultimedia. The multimedia player 281 may be implemented in a hardwareform inside the controller 280, or may be implemented in a software formseparately from the controller 280. The power supply 290 may receiveexternal and internal power under a control of the controller 280, andmay supply power necessary to operate each element, unit, or device ofthe mobile terminal 200.

Depending on specifications of the mobile terminal 200 in actualimplementation, each constituent element, unit, or device of the mobileterminal in the block diagram of FIG. 5 may be combined or omitted, or anew element may be added. Two or more components may be combined intoone element, unit, or device, or one component or one element may bedivided into two or more components or two or more elements, as needed.In addition, the function of each block is described for the purpose ofdescribing an exemplary embodiment and thus specific operations ordevices should not be construed as limiting the scope and spirit ofembodiments disclosed herein.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an air conditioner system according toan embodiment. Referring to FIG. 6, the air conditioner system mayinclude an indoor unit 20, an outdoor unit 10, a remote controller 60, awireless sensor 80, and a mobile terminal 200. The air conditionersystem may further include a controller, a ventilator, a defroster, ahumidifier, or a heater, for example.

The remote controller 60 may be connected to the indoor unit 20 or theoutdoor unit 10 in a wired manner or in a wireless manner. As describedabove with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5, the mobile terminal 200 and thecontroller 50 (see FIG. 1) may be wirelessly connected to units such asthe indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10, and may control each of theunits. The indoor unit 20 may include a plurality of indoor units, andthe outdoor unit 10 may include a plurality of outdoor units. The mobileterminal 200 and the controller 50 may control each of the indoor andoutdoor units 10 or 20.

In response to a request for data information from the mobile terminal200 or the controller 50, the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 maytransmit the requested data information. Depending on the request fromthe mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50, the indoor unit 20 and theoutdoor unit 10 may transmit data information with different content.

The indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 may receive a control signalfrom the mobile terminal 200 and the controller 50. When receiving thecontrol signal from the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50, theindoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 may report reception of thecontrol signal to the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50, butaspects of embodiments disclosed herein are not limited thereto and theabove process may vary depending on a communication method adapted bythe air conditioner system.

When receiving the control signal, the indoor unit 20 and the outdoorunit 10 may perform an operation corresponding to the control signal.The indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 may receive, from the mobileterminal 200 or the controller 50, a storage cycle or a storage time tostore a data signal or data information including an operation state.The indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 may store data informationperiodically or in response to occurrence of an error.

When an error occurs, the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 mayextend the storage time of the recently stored data information. Each ofthe indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit 10 may include a storage mediumor memory that stores the data information. For example, the indoor unit20 and the outdoor unit 10 may periodically receive data information andmay store, in response to occurrence of an error, the recently storeddata information in a way that distinguishes the recently stored datainformation from other information or data information, but aspects ofthe embodiments disclosed herein are not limited thereto.

The data information may include an operation state of the indoor unit20 or the outdoor unit 10. For example, the data information may includeair temperature, compression temperature, evaporation temperature,discharge temperature, or heat-exchanger temperature, for example, butaspects of embodiments disclosed herein are not limited thereto and thedata information may include a broad range of information related tooperation of the indoor unit 20 or the outdoor unit 10.

The indoor unit 20 or the outdoor unit 10 may transmit data informationincluding the operation state to the mobile terminal 200 or thecontroller 50. When an on/off state or the operation state of the indoorunit 20 or the outdoor unit 10 is changed or when an error occurs, theindoor unit 20 or the outdoor unit 10 may transmit corresponding datainformation to the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50. The indoorunit 20 or the outdoor unit 10 may communicate with the mobile terminal200 or the controller 50 in a predetermined period or a predeterminedtime period in response to occurrence of an event. The mobile terminal200 or the controller 50 may receive in real time detailed cycle data,which allows error analysis of each unit (or each of the indoor oroutdoor units 20, 10), and may display the received data on a screen.

When the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 displays datainformation in a test form such as numbers, data information of theindoor unit 20, data information of the outdoor unit 10, and valveinformation of a pipe connecting the indoor unit 20 and the outdoor unit10 may be displayed. In some implementations, when displaying the valveinformation, the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 may displayopening or closing, an opened/closed status, or an on/off status of avalve in the form of color or a picture. For example, the mobileterminal 200 or the controller 50 may display or indicate an openedvalve in blue and a closed valve in gray, or may display a picture of anopened valve and/or a picture of a closed valve, but aspects ofembodiments disclosed herein are not limited to the aforementioned coloror types of pictures.

When displaying data information in the form of a time series image, themobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 may select an outdoor unit 10or an indoor unit 20 to display. When selecting one outdoor unit 10 fromamong a plurality of outdoor units 10, the mobile terminal 200 or thecontroller 50 may select one indoor unit 20 to check from among aplurality of indoor units 20 connected to the selected outdoor unit 10.

When the outdoor unit 10 and the indoor unit 20 are selected, the mobileterminal 200 or the controller 50 may receive data information, whichmay include an operation state of the selected indoor unit 20 and aconnection state between the selected outdoor unit 10 and the selectedindoor unit 20. The connection state may include a connection state of apipe, a flow inside the pipe, or an on/off state or an opened/closedstate of the valve, for example, but aspects of embodiments disclosedherein are not limited thereto.

The mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 may display an operationstate of the selected outdoor unit 10 and the selected indoor unit 20 ina time-series manner in the form of a change of a picture or change ofcolor. The mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 may display a stateof a pipe connecting the selected outdoor unit 10 and the selectedindoor unit 20, and an on/off state of a valve.

The mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 may check in real time anoperation state of the indoor unit 20 or the outdoor unit 10. Whenchecking the operation state of the indoor unit 20 or the outdoor unit10 in real time, the mobile terminal 200 or the controller 50 mayreceive data information in real time and display the received datainformation. The wireless sensor 80 may sense an air condition or acondition of the air, and may transmit air condition data correspondingto the sensed air condition.

The air condition may be a condition of the air based on at least one oftemperature, humidity, pressure, an amount of dust, an amount of carbondioxide, or an amount of oxygen. Accordingly, the wireless sensor 80 maymeasure at least one of temperature, humidity, pressure, an amount ofdust, an amount of carbon dioxide, or an amount of oxygen. The aircondition data may include data on at least one of temperature,humidity, pressure, an amount of dust, an amount of carbon dioxide, oran amount of oxygen.

The wireless sensor 80 may transmit the air condition data in abroadcast manner. The broadcast manner may be a method of transmittingdata without specifying a recipient. By transmitting air condition datato a predetermined communication network without specifying a recipient,the wireless sensor 80 may save energy, operations, and componentsnecessary to set a recipient of the data.

The air condition data broadcast by the wireless sensor 80 may betransferred to the outdoor unit 10 or the indoor unit 20. The aircondition data broadcast by the wireless sensor 80 may be transferred tothe controller 50 or the mobile terminal 200. The indoor unit 20 or theoutdoor unit 10 may perform an appropriate air conditioning operationbased on the received air condition data. The indoor unit 20 or theoutdoor unit 10 may operate in accordance with a control signal receivedfrom the controller 50 or the mobile terminal 200.

As shown in FIG. 6, when units such as indoor units 20 and outdoor units10 are wirelessly connected in the air conditioner system, installationcosts and time may be reduced, compared to when the units are connectedin a wired manner. It is possible to check information of any one unitof the indoor and outdoor units 20, 10 and control the correspondingunit via direct communication with the corresponding unit withoutpassing through a particular unit, such as the controller 50.Communication time may therefore be reduced, making use more convenient.

In some cases, such as a building and apartment where many units arewirelessly connected, it may be possible to check and controlinformation. However, as the number of wirelessly connected units and/ordevices increases, communication quality may suffer unless an optimalcommunication channel is configured to reduce communication speed andinterferences. Thus, there is need for a method of allowing wirelesslyconnected units to automatically set the optimal communication channel.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an outdoorunit according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 7, an outdoor unit 10(see FIG. 1) may receive a command or a setting command such as an autoaddress setting command or an auto communication channel setting commandin S710.

The outdoor unit 10 may be grouped with a plurality of indoor units 20(see FIG. 1), and the outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units20 in the same group may periodically exchange a signal with each otherin response to occurrence of an event. In addition, the outdoor unit 10and the plurality of the indoor units 20 in the same group may becontrolled as a group. The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoorunits 20 may wirelessly communicate using a sub-GHz frequency band. Eachwireless communication module 120 of the outdoor unit 10 and theplurality of indoor units 20 may wirelessly communicate with each otheror units or devices of the air conditioner system using a sub-GHZfrequency band under the control of the controller 110.

The sub-GHz frequency band has excellent transmission and rotationcharacteristics, and thus, is less attenuated in the presence of a wallor an inter-floor obstacle. Therefore, the sub-GHz frequency band may beused in the communication of the air conditioner system in which aplurality of units are positioned in multiple floors in a buildingpartitioned by walls.

The setting command may be an input generated by pressing a hard keyprovided in the outdoor unit 10, or may be received from the controller50 (see FIG. 1) or the mobile terminal 200 (see FIG. 2). Alternatively,the setting command may be received from any one of the plurality ofindoor units 20 belonging to the same group.

The outdoor unit 10 may transmit a channel scan start command or achannel scan command to the plurality of indoor units 20 belonging tothe same group in S720. The outdoor unit 10 may perform a channel scanto check whether a channel or a communication channel is being used andto measure a communication load of the channel in S730. The channel scanmay be performed on a plurality of channels or pre-set channels whichare set in a predetermined range of frequencies in a sub-GHz band. Forexample, the channel scan may be performed on 20 channels which arepreset in a sub-GHz band.

A variety of modification methods such as Frequency Shift Keying (FSK),Gaussian Frequency Shift Keying (GFSK), Offset Quadriphase Shift Keyingor Offset Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (OQPSK), Phase Shift Keying(PSK), and Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) may be usedin wireless communications. If a channel scan is performed using everymodification method, a channel scan time may be dramatically increasedin proportion to the number of channels and the number of modificationmethods in use. Thus, the outdoor unit 10 may check an amount of ormeasure the communication load of a plurality of channels in an energydetection method, thereby reducing a channel scan time.

The outdoor unit 10 may scan all channels, and, depending on whetherenergy is detected in a channel during the scanning, determine whetherthe corresponding channel is being used. In some implementations, whenenergy equal to or greater than a predetermined energy value isdetected, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a corresponding channelis being used.

The outdoor unit 10 may repeatedly scan all channels a predeterminednumber of times, and decide an amount of communication load based onenergy detected through the repeated scanning. The outdoor unit 10 maydecide an amount or size of the communication load based on the amountor size of detected energy.

According to an embodiment, a channel use amount may be decided, not bychecking the channel use amount on the basis of each channel by eachmodulation method, but instead by checking the channel use amount on thebasis of channel idleness regardless of a type of wireless modulationmethod. For example, it is possible to measure a communication load inan energy detection method for a predetermined time period, regardlessof a modulation method, and to automatically set a communication channelwhen a channel for use is determined. By performing a wireless channelscan in sub-GHz band, it may be possible to check an amount of thecommunication load and the use of each channel.

The outdoor unit 10 may receive the results of performed channel scansfrom a plurality of indoor units 20 belonging to the same group in S740.The plurality of indoor units 20 belonging to the same group thatreceive the channel scan command from the outdoor unit 10 may alsoperform a channel scan in the same way the outdoor unit 10 performs achannel scan, and transmit the channel scan results to the outdoor unit10. Each indoor unit in the plurality of indoor units 20 may scan eachchannel, or alternatively may scan a plurality of channels such thatevery channel is scanned by at least one indoor unit in the plurality ofindoor units 20. FIG. 11A exemplifies a compilation of scan results.

Based on a result of the performed channel scan by the outdoor unit 10and the channel scan results received from the plurality of indoor units20, the outdoor unit 10 may determine a channel to use in thecorresponding group in S750. The plurality of indoor units 20 may beprovided in different layers and in different spaces. Thus, acommunication environment may vary depending on positions of theplurality of indoor units 20.

A channel for use may be determined not on the basis of a result of achannel scan performed by a predetermined device alone, but on the basisof aggregated results of channel scans performed by both the outdoorunit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20, individually. A channelscan may be performed by all units belonging to a group; that is, achannel scan may be performed by the outdoor unit 10 and each of theindoor units of the plurality of indoor units 20 belonging to the samegroup. The outdoor unit 10 may aggregate results of the channel scansreceived from all units of the group. The outdoor unit 10 may analyze achannel difference at each position by aggregating the channel scanresults, and may determine that a channel not being used or having thesmallest amount of communication load is a channel to be used.

The channel scan results may include load occupancy rates, and theoutdoor unit 10 may use the highest load occupancy rate of each channelin the aggregate channel scan results as a representative load occupancyrate of a corresponding channel. That is, the “worst” or highest resultamong the results for a particular channel by all units may be used as arepresentative value of a use amount of each channel. For example, inFIG. 11A, the representative value of a use amount of channel 1 (CH01)would be 40%.

If there is only one channel whose load occupancy rate is 0%, theoutdoor unit 10 may determine that the channel whose load occupancy rateis 0% is a channel to be used. If there is a plurality of channelshaving a load occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determinethat a channel with an adjacent channel having the lowest load occupancyrate among the plurality of channels having the load occupancy rate of0% is a channel to be used. If there is a plurality of channels having aload occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that achannel having an adjacent channel with the greatest difference in themeasured load occupancy rates from among the plurality of channelshaving the load occupancy rate of 0% is a channel to be used.

Interference may occur between channels and adjacent channels thereof.Thus, if there is a plurality of channels having a load occupancy rateof 0%, a channel with an adjacent channel having a low load occupancyrate may be used in order to minimize interference.

If there is no channel having a load occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoorunit 10 may determine that a channel having the lowest load occupancyrate is a channel to be used. That is, the outdoor unit 10 may use achannel which currently has the lowest communication load.Alternatively, if there is no channel having a load occupancy rate of0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channel having the lowestload occupancy rate due to other devices not included in the airconditioner system is a channel to be used.

Communication load between units included in the air conditioner systemmay be easy to expect and manage, compared to communication load betweenunits over different wireless communication such as in a heterogeneousnetwork. Thus, if there is no channel having a load occupancy rate of0%, a channel having the lowest load occupancy rate by a heterogeneousnetwork may be determined to be a channel to be used.

Even in the case where there is no channel having a load occupancy rateof 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channel whose adjacentchannel has the lowest load occupancy rate is a channel to be used. Ifthere is a plurality of channels with respective adjacent channelshaving the lowest load occupancy rate or similarly low load occupancyrates, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channel having thegreatest absolute value of signal strength is a channel to be used.

When there is no channel having the load occupancy rate of 0%, theoutdoor unit 10 may determine that a channel with an adjacent channelhaving the greatest difference in the measured load occupancy rate is achannel to be used. The outdoor unit 10 may output information of thedetermined channel, that is, the channel determined to be used, to theplurality of indoor units 20 in S760. The information of the determinedchannel may include a command that instructs setting the determinedchannel as a communication channel.

The wireless communication module 120 of the outdoor unit 10 maybroadcast a signal including the information of the determined channel apredetermined number of times, and the respective wireless communicationmodules 120 of the plurality of indoor units 20 may receive thebroadcasted signal.

The outdoor unit 10 may set the determined channel as a communicationchannel. When the setting command is received, the outdoor unit 10 mayset the determined channel as a communication channel, and perform autoaddress setting. One example of the auto address setting will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 12.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an indoorunit according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 8, an indoor unit 20(see FIG. 1) according to an embodiment may include or receive a channelscan start command or a channel scan command from an outdoor unit 10(see FIG. 1) belonging to the same group in S830.

The outdoor unit 10 and a plurality of indoor units 20 (see FIG. 1) maybe set as one group. The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoorunits 20 in the same group may exchange signals periodically or inresponse to occurrence of an event. In addition, the outdoor unit 10 andthe plurality of indoor units 20 in the same group may be controlled asa group.

The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 may wirelesslycommunicate with each other using a sub-GHz frequency band. Inaccordance with control by the controller 110, wireless communicationmodules 120 of the outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20may wirelessly communicate with each other or other units or devices ofthe air conditioner system using the sub-GHz frequency band.

A sub-GHz frequency band has excellent transmission and rotationcharacteristics, and thus may be less attenuated in response to a wallor an inter-floor object. Thus, the wireless communication module 120may be efficiently used in communication within an air conditionersystem that is provided with a plurality of units or devices in abuilding partitioned by walls or separated by floors.

Any one of the plurality of indoor units 20 may receive a settingcommand, such as an auto address setting command or an autocommunication channel setting command, in S810, and may transmit thesetting command or a corresponding signal to the outdoor unit 10belonging to the same group of the plurality of indoor units 20 in S820.The plurality of indoor units 20 may receive the setting command fromthe controller 50 (see FIG. 1) or the mobile terminal 200 (see FIG. 2).The outdoor unit 10 may transmit a channel scan start command or achannel scan command to the plurality of indoor units 20 belonging tothe same group.

The plurality of indoor units 20 may receive the channel scan command(S830) and perform a channel scan to check a use amount and acommunication load of each channel in S840. Each of the indoor units inthe plurality of indoor units 20 may perform a channel scan on aplurality of channels or on every channel, which may be pre-set channelsset in a predetermined range of frequencies in a sub-GHz band, in asimilar manner as the outdoor unit 10. For example, the channel scan maybe performed on 20 channels which are preset in a sub-GHz band.

The plurality of indoor units 20 may reduce a channel scan time bychecking an amount of communication load of a plurality of channels inan energy detection method. The plurality of indoor units 20 may scanall channels, or pre-set channels, and determine whether a correspondingchannel is being used, depending on whether energy is detected in thecorresponding channel during the scanning.

When energy equal to or greater than a predetermined energy value isdetected, the plurality of indoor units 20 may determine that acorresponding channel is being used. The plurality of indoor units 20may scan all set channels repeatedly a predetermined number of times,and determine an amount of communication load based on energy detectedthrough the repeated scanning. The indoor units 20 may determine anamount of communication load based on the size of detected energy.

A channel use amount may be determined, not by checking on the basis ofeach channel by each modulation method, but by checking on the basis ofchannel idleness, regardless of a type of wireless modulation method.For example, it is possible to measure communication load in an energydetection method for a predetermined period of time, regardless of atype of a modulation method, and to automatically set a communicationmodule when a channel to be used is determined.

In addition, by wirelessly performing a channel scan on sub-GHz bandwireless communication, it is possible to check an amount ofcommunication load and use of each channel.

Each indoor unit of the plurality of indoor units 20 may transmitchannel scan results to the outdoor unit 10 in S850. The outdoor unit 10may determine a channel to be used in a corresponding group based on aresult of a channel scan performed on by the outdoor unit 10 and alsothe channel scan results received from the plurality of indoor units 20.

The outdoor unit 10 may output information on the determined channel tobe used to the plurality of indoor units 20. The information on thedetermined channel may include a command that instructs setting thedetermined channel as a communication channel. The wirelesscommunication module 120 of the outdoor unit 10 may broadcast a signalincluding the information on the determined channel a predeterminednumber of times, and the respective wireless communication modules 120of the indoor units 20 may receive the broadcast signal in S860.

The indoor units 20 may set the determined channel as a communicationchannel. In addition, when the setting command is received, the indoorunits 20 may set the determined channel as a communication channel andperform auto address setting. One example of the auto address settingwill be described with reference to FIG. 12.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment, and FIGS. 10A-10B, 11A,and 11B are diagrams explaining a method for controlling an airconditioner system according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 9, an outdoor unit 10 and a plurality of indoor units20 a to 20 n may be set as one group, and the outdoor unit 10 and theplurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n may wirelessly communicate witheach other using a sub-GHz frequency band. The outdoor unit 10 and theplurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n in a particular group may receivea setting command such as an auto address setting command or an autocommunication channel setting command in S901.

In FIG. 9 shows an example in which the outdoor unit 10 receives thesetting command, but aspects of embodiments disclosed herein are notlimited thereto. For example, one of the plurality of indoor units 20 ato 20 n may receive a setting command, and the corresponding indoor unithaving received the setting command may transfer the received settingcommand by transmitting a predetermined signal to the outdoor unit 10.

The outdoor unit 10 may transmit a channel scan start command or achannel scan command to the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 nbelonging to the particular group in S910. In some implementations, theoutdoor unit 10 may output the channel scan command in a broadcastmanner.

The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n mayeach perform a channel scan individually in S921, S922, and S923. Thechannel scans may be performed on a plurality of channels which is setin a predetermined range of frequencies in a sub-GHz band. For example,the channel scans may be performed on 20 channels which are preset in asub-GHZ band.

The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n maycheck an amount of communication load of a plurality of channels in anenergy detection method, thereby reducing a channel scan time. Theoutdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n may scanall the channels individually, and, depending on whether energy isdetected in a channel during the scanning, determine whether thecorresponding channel is being used. When energy equal to or greaterthan a predetermined value is detected in a channel, the outdoor unit 10and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n may determine that thecorresponding channel is being used.

As shown in FIG. 10A, the outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoorunits 20 a to 20 n may perform an energy scan to sequentially detectenergy per channel. The shorter an energy scan time is, the better itis. The energy scan may be performed on all the channels for a presetperiod of time. Accordingly, accuracy of the energy scan may be enhancedfurther.

As shown in FIG. 10B, if an energy scan time for a predetermined channelis set to be relatively long, the probability of failure in thedetection of energy occurring in a communication signal of thecorresponding channel is increased. Thus, repeatedly performing anenergy scan in the channel in a predetermined cycle may help detectenergy more accurately.

Thus, the outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 nmay perform a scan on all channels a predetermined number of times, anddetermine an amount of communication load based on energy detectedthrough the repeated scanning. The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality ofindoor units 20 a to 20 n may determine an amount of communication loadbased on the size of detected energy.

According to an embodiment, a channel use amount may be determined, notby checking on the basis of each channel by each modulation method, butby checking on the basis of channel idleness, regardless of a type ofwireless modulation method. For example, a communication load may bemeasured in an energy detection method for a predetermined period oftime, regardless of a type of a modulation method, and a communicationmodule may be automatically set when a channel to be used is determined.

In addition, by performing a wireless channel scan of wirelesscommunication of a sub-GHz band, it is possible to check an amount ofcommunication load and use of each channel. The plurality of indoorunits 20 a to 20 n may transmit channel scan results to the outdoor unit10 in S931 and S932.

The outdoor unit 10 may determine a channel of the corresponding groupto be used based on a result of the channel scan performed by theoutdoor unit 10 and the results received from the channel scansperformed by the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n in S940.

A channel to be used may be determined on the basis of results of thechannel scans that were individually performed by all units (that is,the outdoor unit 10 and all of the indoor units 20 of the plurality ofindoor units) of a group and aggregated by the outdoor unit 10, and maynot be determined on the basis of a result of a channel scan performedby a predetermined device alone. The outdoor unit 10 may analyze adifference between channels at each location based on the aggregatedchannel scan results, and determine that a channel not being used orhaving the lowest amount of communication load is a channel to be used.

The outdoor unit 10 may use the highest load occupancy rate of eachchannel in the channel scan results of the outdoor unit 10 and theplurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n as a representative loadoccupancy rate of a corresponding channel. That is, the “worst” orhighest result in all results by each unit for a particular channel maybe used as a representative value of the use amount of that channel. Forexample, in FIG. 11A, the representative load occupancy rate of channel1 or CH01 would be determined to be 40%.

FIG. 11A shows an example of a channel scan result. In the example ofFIG. 11A, a representative value for CH01, or channel 1, may be set to40% from among 40%, 30%, and 28%. In the same manner, representativevalues for CH02 (channel 2), CH03 (channel 3), CH04 (channel 4), CH05(channel 5), and CH06 (channel 6) may be 30%, 0%, 0%, 10%, and 40%,respectively.

If there is only one channel having a load occupancy rate of 0%, theoutdoor unit 10 may determine that the channel having the load occupancyrate of 0% is a channel to be used, or the determined channel or thechosen channel. If there is a plurality of channels having a loadoccupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channelwith an adjacent channel having the lowest load occupancy rate among theplurality of channels having the load occupancy rate of 0% is the chosenchannel.

Referring to the example of FIG. 11A, CH03 and CH04 each have a loadoccupancy rate of 0%. The outdoor unit 10 may determine one of CH03 andCH04 to be the chosen channel. CH02 and CH04, which are adjacentchannels of channel 3, have a load occupancy rate of 30% and a loadoccupancy rate of 0%, respectively. CH03 and CH05, which are adjacentchannels of CH04, have a load occupancy rate of 0% and a load occupancyrate of 10%, respectively. Thus, by selecting CH04 to be the chosenchannel, whose adjacent channels have a lower load occupancy rate, theoutdoor unit 10 may reduce interference between adjacent channels.

In addition, if there is a plurality of channels having a load occupancyrate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channel having anadjacent channel with the greatest difference in the measured loadoccupancy rates from among the plurality of channels having the loadoccupancy rate of 0% is a channel to be used, or the chosen channel.Even in this case, CH04 may be selected in the example of FIG. 11A.Alternatively, if there are two or more channels having a load occupancyrate of 0%, a channel having the maximum sum of a square of a differencebetween the channel and each of two adjacent channels whose loadoccupancy rate is greater than 0% may be selected.

If there are no channels having a load occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoorunit 10 may determine that a channel having the lowest load occupancyrate is the chosen channel. That is, a channel currently having thelowest communication load may be used. If there are two or more channelsequally having a low load occupancy rate, one of the two or morechannels may be selected.

FIG. 11B is an example of a channel scan result, showing examples of arepresentative value of each channel, a homogeneity occupancy rate, anda heterogeneity occupancy rate. The homogeneity occupancy rate indicatesa load occupancy rate by loads from units included in the airconditioner system, and a heterogeneity occupancy rate is a loadoccupancy rate by loads from other electronic devices not included inthe air conditioner system.

Referring to the example of FIG. 11B, the outdoor unit 10 may determinethat CH01 or CH02 have the lowest load occupancy rate, and may becontenders for the chosen channel. Communication load between unitsincluded in the air conditioner system (that is, units in a homogenousnetwork) may be easy to expect and manage compared to other externalwireless communication (a heterogeneous network).

Thus, if there is no channel having a load occupancy rate of 0%, achannel having the lowest load occupancy rate by a heterogeneous networkmay be determined to be the chosen channel. If there is no channelhaving a load occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determinethat a channel having the lowest load occupancy rate due to otherdevices not included in the air conditioner system is the chosenchannel.

Referring to the example of FIG. 11B, the outdoor unit 10 may determinethat CH01 has a higher homogeneity occupancy rate and a lowerheterogeneity occupancy rate than CH02 and may therefore be determinedto be the chosen channel. Even when there is no channel having a loadoccupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that a channelwith an adjacent channel having the lowest load occupancy rate is thechosen channel. If there is a plurality of channels with an adjacentchannel having the lowest load occupancy rate, the outdoor unit 10 maydetermine that a channel having the greatest absolute value of signalstrength is the chosen channel. Even when there is no channel having aload occupancy rate of 0%, the outdoor unit 10 may determine that achannel with the greatest difference in a load occupancy rate with anadjacent channel, or a channel having an adjacent channel having thegreatest difference in the measured load occupancy rates, is the chosenchannel.

The outdoor unit 10 may output information on the determined or chosenchannel to the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n in S950. Theinformation on the determined channel or the determined communicationchannel may include a command that instructs setting the determinedchannel as a communication channel.

The wireless communication module 120 of the outdoor unit 10 maybroadcast a signal including the information on the determined channel apredetermined number of times, and the wireless communication module 120of each of the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n may receive thebroadcasted signal. The outdoor unit 10 and the plurality of indoorunits 20 a to 20 n may set the determined channel as a communicationchannel in S961, S962, and S963.

In a building, an apartment, and any case where many products arewirelessly connected, embodiments disclosed herein may determine anavailable frequency band from among limited frequency resources andautomatically determine an optimal frequency without a user's setting.In addition, when attempting to change a channel, an installer, anengineer, a SVC man, or a user, for example, may be able to check theoptimal communication channel and manually change a channel.

Accordingly, equipment such as an additional spectrum analyzer may notbe necessary, and the most comfortable channel environment may beconfirmed with low costs. Meanwhile, if any one of the outdoor unit 10and the plurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n receives an auto addresssetting command or a setting command, the outdoor unit 10 and theplurality of indoor units 20 a to 20 n may set the determined channel asa communication channel and perform auto address setting.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of an auto address settingmethod of an air conditioner system according to an embodiment. Aplurality of units, that is, an outdoor unit, an indoor unit, and acontroller, may allocate addresses by wirelessly communicating with eachother. In the following, the plurality of units are exemplified by afirst outdoor unit 11, a first indoor unit 21, and a second indoor unit22.

One of a plurality of units is a master unit capable of allocating anaddress to another unit. Hereinafter, the first outdoor unit 11 isdescribed as a master unit and as allocating addresses to the pluralityof units.

Even an indoor unit may be set as a master unit. However, since anindoor unit and an outdoor unit are operatively connected via arefrigerant pipe, description is provided by taking an example ofallocating indoor units' addresses by an outdoor unit.

Respective controllers and wireless communication modules of the firstoutdoor unit 11 and the first and second indoor units correspond to thecontrollers and the wireless communication modules described above withreference to FIG. 4. However, in order to distinguish the controllersand the wireless communication modules from each other, it is describedin the following such that the outdoor unit 11 may include anoutdoor-unit or outdoor controller 111 and an outdoor-unit wirelesscommunication module or an outdoor wireless communication module 121;the first indoor unit 21 may include a first controller or a firstindoor controller 112 and a first wireless communication module or afirst indoor wireless communication module 122; and the second indoorunit 22 may include a second controller or a second indoor controller113 and a second wireless communication module or a second indoorwireless communication module 123. Once operating in response to powerapplied to a corresponding unit, each wireless communication module mayimmediately check a communication state.

Referring to FIG. 12, the outdoor wireless communication module 121 maytransmit a connection verification signal through wirelesscommunication, and may verify connection with the first wirelesscommunication module 122 and with the second wireless communicationmodule 123 based on whether a response to the connection verificationsignal is received in S1211 and S1212.

Even without a control command of the outdoor controller 111, theoutdoor wireless communication module 121 may check communicationconnection with another unit, such as the first and second indoor units21 and 22. If a response is not received for a predetermined period oftime or more, the outdoor wireless communication module 121 may apply acommunication error or transmit a communication error signal to theoutdoor controller 111. Accordingly, the outdoor controller 111 mayoutput the communication error.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121, the first wirelesscommunication module 122, and the second wireless communication module123 may verify connection by exchanging signals to each other. In thecase where an address is not yet allocated to each unit, the outdoorwireless communication module 121 may broadcast a signal.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may acknowledge wirelesslyconnected units such as the first indoor unit 21 and the second indoorunit 22, in S1220. As the connection is acknowledged, the outdoorwireless communication module 121 may receive information on the firstindoor unit 21 and the second indoor unit 22. The first wirelesscommunication module 122 and the second wireless communication module123 may also receive and store information on the outdoor unit 11.Received information may include a type and a model of a correspondingunit. Information on a unit may be used to distinguish the unit withrespect to a temporary address.

The wireless communication module 120 may store information on a unitreceived from the controller 110. Then, when connection is verified orwhen a request is received from another unit, the wireless communicationmodule 120 may transmit a response corresponding to data stored in amemory without additionally requesting data from the controller 110.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may allocate a temporaryaddress to a unit or device to which connection is acknowledged inS1230. The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may allocatetemporary addresses to the first indoor unit 21 and the second indoorunit 22. Temporary addresses may be allocated in order in whichconnection is acknowledged, or may be allocated in response toinformation on a unit which is received during verification ofconnection. The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may evenallocate a temporary address even to the outdoor unit 11.

When an address setting start command or the setting command is receivedfrom the outdoor controller 111 in S1240, the outdoor wirelesscommunication module 121 may transmit a pre-allocated temporary address(or a first address) to the first indoor unit 21 in S1251. Then, thefirst wireless communication module 121 may receive the first addressfrom the outdoor wireless communication module 121 and may store thereceived first address.

In addition, the outdoor wireless communication module 121 may transmita pre-allocated temporary address (or a second address) to the secondindoor unit 22 in S1252. Then, the second wireless communication module123 may receive the second address from the outdoor wirelesscommunication module 121 and may store the received second address.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121, the first wirelesscommunication module 122, and the second wireless communication module123 may start to communicate with each other on the basis of theirtemporary addresses, or on the basis of the first and second addresses,and the address allocated to the outdoor unit 11. The outdoor wirelesscommunication module 121, the first wireless communication module 122,and the second wireless communication module 123 may communicate witheach other not just in a broadcast manner, but also in a unicast manneror direct manner based on the temporary addresses.

In setting an address, the outdoor wireless communication module 121 mayrequest a product number or other identification number from the outdoorcontroller 111 in S1261. The outdoor controller 111 may transmit theproduct number to the outdoor wireless communication module 121 inresponse to the request from the outdoor wireless communication module121 in S1271. The identification number may include a product number, aunique number, a serial number, or a MAC address, for example.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may set an address of theoutdoor unit using a received product number or identification numberand a temporary address in S1281. The outdoor unit communication module121 may set a new address of the outdoor unit 11 based on theidentification number and may set an address of the outdoor unit 11 bymatching the temporary address with the identification number or bycombining the identification number and the temporary address.

In setting an address, the first wireless communication module 122 mayrequest a product number or an identification number from the firstcontroller 112 in S1262. In response to the request from the firstwireless communication module 122, the first controller 112 maytransmits a product number or identification number of the first indoorunit 21 to the first wireless communication module 122 in S1272. Thefirst wireless communication module 122 may set an address of the firstindoor unit 11 based on the product number or identification numberreceived from the first controller 112 in S1282.

The second wireless communication module 123 may request a productnumber or an identification number from the second controller 113 inS1263. In response to the request from the second wireless communicationmodule 123, the second controller 113 may transmit a product number oran identification number of the second indoor unit 22 to the secondwireless communication module 123 in S1273. The second wirelesscommunication module 123 may set an address of the second indoor unit 22based on the product number or the identification number received fromthe second controller 113 in S1283.

The first wireless communication module 122 and the second wirelesscommunication module 123 may set addresses of the indoor units 21 and22, regardless of temporary addresses, based on received product numbersor identification numbers. In addition, the first wireless communicationmodule 122 and the second wireless communication module 123 may set theaddresses of the indoor units 21 and 22 by matching the temporaryaddresses with the product numbers or identification numbers, or bycombining the temporary addresses with the product numbers oridentification numbers.

The first wireless communication module 122 may transmit a set addressof the first indoor unit 21 to the outdoor unit 11 (or the outdoorwireless communication module 121) In S1291, and the second wirelesscommunication module 123 may transmit a set address of the second indoorunit 22 to the outdoor unit 11 and/or the outdoor wireless communicationmodule 121 in S1292. The first wireless communication module 122 and thesecond wireless communication module 123 may transmit the addresses ofthe indoor units 21 and 22 to the outdoor unit 11 based on the temporaryaddresses.

The outdoor wireless communication module 121 may store the receivedaddresses of the first indoor unit 21 and the second indoor unit 22 inS1300. When addresses are completely set for all units, the outdoorwireless communication module 121 may complete address setting.

When addresses are completely set for all units, the outdoor wirelesscommunication module 121 may discard temporary addresses, such as thefirst address or the second address. The outdoor wireless communicationmodule 121 may transmit a signal that informs or indicates thecompletion of address setting to the outdoor controller 111 in S1310.The outdoor controller 111 may terminate address setting in S1320 whenit is informed of completion of address setting.

Embodiments disclosed herein may allow a plurality of units or devicesto wirelessly communicate with each other based on set addresses.Embodiments disclosed herein may newly or additionally install a deviceprovided with a wireless communication module, check a current channeluse amount, check use of each channel over a limited range of wirelesscommunication channels, and set a channel not being used or having a lowload as a wireless communication channel.

Embodiments disclosed herein may automatically set an optimalcommunication channel. In addition, embodiments disclosed herein maycreate a high-quality wireless communication environment. Embodimentsdisclosed herein may provide an air conditioner system which allowsunits to wirelessly communicate directly with each other regardless ofan installation environment, and a control method of the system.

An electronic device or unit, a mobile terminal, and an air conditionersystem according to embodiments disclosed herein may not be limitedlyapplicable to the configurations and methods of the embodiments asdescribed above. For example, all or some of the embodiments may beselectively combined to achieve various modifications.

A control method of the electronic device or unit, the mobile terminal,and the air conditioner system according to embodiments disclosed hereinmay be implemented as code that can be written on a computer-readablemedium in which a program is recorded and thus read by a computer. Thecomputer-readable medium may include all kinds of recording devices inwhich data is stored in a computer-readable manner. Examples of thecomputer-readable recording medium may include a read only memory (ROM),a random access memory (RAM), a compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM),a magnetic tape, a floppy disc, and an optical data storage device. Inaddition, the computer-readable medium may be implemented as a carrierwave such as, for example, data transmission over the Internet.Furthermore, the recording medium readable by a processor may bedistributed over computer systems connected over a network, and the codereadable by a processor may be stored and executed in a distributedmanner.

While embodiments have been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be embodiments, it is to be understood that thedisclosure herein is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, onthe contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalentarrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appendedclaims.

Embodiments disclosed herein may provide an air conditioner systemcapable of setting an optimal wireless communication channel, and acontrol method thereof. Embodiments disclosed herein may provide an airconditioner system capable of implementing a high-quality wirelesscommunication environment, and a control method thereof. Embodimentsdisclosed herein may provide an air conditioner system in which eachunit or device is capable of wirelessly communicating with one another,regardless of an installation environment, and a control method thereof.

Embodiments disclosed herein can be accomplished by the provision of acontrol method of an air conditioner system which includes one or morewireless communication network groups each including an outdoor unit anda plurality of indoor units, the method including receiving, by one ofan outdoor unit and a plurality of indoor units which belong to aparticular group, a setting command such as an auto address settingcommand or an auto communication channel setting command; transmitting,by the outdoor unit belonging to the particular group, a channel scanstart command or a channel scan command to the plurality of indoor unitsbelonging to the particular group; performing a channel scan by each ofthe outdoor unit and the plurality of indoor units; transmitting, by theplurality of indoor units, channel scan results to the outdoor unit;determining, by the outdoor unit, a channel to be used of the particulargroup based on a result of a channel scan performed by the outdoor unitand the channel scan results received from the plurality of indoorunits; and outputting, by the outdoor unit, information on thedetermined channel to the plurality of indoor units.

According to embodiments disclosed herein an optimal communicationchannel may be set. In addition, a high-quality wireless communicationenvironment may be implemented. An air conditioner system in which eachunit is able to wirelessly communicate with one another regardless of aninstallation environment, and a control method thereof may be provided.Other effects may be explicitly or implicitly disclosed in thedescription of the embodiments of embodiments disclosed herein.

It will be understood that when an element or layer is referred to asbeing “on” another element or layer, the element or layer can bedirectly on another element or layer or intervening elements or layers.In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on”another element or layer, there are no intervening elements or layerspresent. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and allcombinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, third, forexample, may be used herein to describe various elements, components,regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions,layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These termsare only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer orsection from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first element,component, region, layer or section could be termed a second element,component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachingsof embodiments disclosed herein.

Spatially relative terms, such as “lower”, “upper” and the like, may beused herein for ease of description to describe the relationship of oneelement or feature to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated inthe figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms areintended to encompass different orientations of the device in use oroperation, in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. Forexample, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements describedas “lower” relative to other elements or features would then be oriented“upper” relative the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplaryterm “lower” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. Thedevice may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at otherorientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used hereininterpreted accordingly.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

Embodiments of the disclosure are described herein with reference tocross-section illustrations that are schematic illustrations ofidealized embodiments (and intermediate structures) of the disclosure.As such, variations from the shapes of the illustrations as a result,for example, of manufacturing techniques and/or tolerances, are to beexpected. Thus, embodiments of the disclosure should not be construed aslimited to the particular shapes of regions illustrated herein but areto include deviations in shapes that result, for example, frommanufacturing.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientificterms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by oneof ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will befurther understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly useddictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that isconsistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art andwill not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unlessexpressly so defined herein.

Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “anembodiment,” “example embodiment,” for example, means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Theappearances of such phrases in various places in the specification arenot necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic is described inconnection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within thepurview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, orcharacteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments.

Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number ofillustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerousother modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled inthe art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles ofthis disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modificationsare possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subjectcombination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawingsand the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications inthe component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also beapparent to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for controlling an air conditionersystem which comprises one or more network groups for a wirelesscommunication, each of the one or more network-groups comprising anoutdoor unit and a plurality of indoor units connected via a refrigerantpipe, the method comprising: receiving, from the outdoor unit or theplurality of indoor units of a particular network group of the one ormore network groups, a setting command; transmitting, by the outdoorunit belonging to the particular network group, a channel scan commandto the plurality of indoor units belonging to the particular networkgroup; performing channel scans by the outdoor unit and each of theplurality of indoor units; transmitting, by the plurality of indoorunits, results of the channel scans to the outdoor unit; determining, bythe outdoor unit, a communications channel to be used for the particularnetwork group based on a result of the channel scan performed by theoutdoor unit and the results of the channel scans received from theplurality of indoor units; and outputting, by the outdoor unit,information on the determined communications channel to the plurality ofindoor units, wherein the performing of the channel scan comprisesmeasuring a load occupancy rate of a plurality of channels, and thedetermining of the communications channel to be used comprises, whenthere is only one channel of the plurality of channels having a loadoccupancy rate of 0%, selecting the channel having the load occupancyrate of 0%.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting apredetermined signal to the outdoor unit by an indoor unit in theplurality of indoor units which has received the setting command.
 3. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the outdoor unit and the plurality of indoorunits of the particular network group perform wireless communicationusing a sub-GHZ frequency band.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein theperforming of the channel scan comprises measuring, by each of theoutdoor unit and the plurality of indoor units, a communication load ofthe plurality of channels using an energy detection method.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the performing of the channel scan comprisesmeasuring the load occupancy rate of the plurality of channels, and thedetermining of the communications channel to be used comprises, whenthere is more than one channel having the load occupancy rate of 0%,selecting a channel that has both the load occupancy rate of 0% and anadjacent channel having a lowest load occupancy rate among all of thechannels that are adjacent to channels having the load occupancy rate of0%.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing of the channel scancomprises measuring the load occupancy rate of the plurality ofchannels, and the determining of the communications channel to be usedcomprises, when there is more than one channel having the load occupancyrate of 0%, selecting a channel with a greatest difference in a loadoccupancy rate from an adjacent channel from among the plurality ofchannels having the load occupancy rate of 0%.
 7. The method of claim 1,wherein the performing of the channel scan comprises measuring the loadoccupancy rate of the plurality of channels, and the determining of thecommunications channel to be used comprises, when there is no channelhaving the load occupancy rate of 0%, selecting a channel having alowest load occupancy rate.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein theperforming of the channel scan comprises measuring the load occupancyrate of the plurality of channels and the determining of thecommunications channel to be used comprises, when there is no channelhaving the load occupancy rate of 0%, selecting a channel having alowest load occupancy rate due to other devices not included in the airconditioner system.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing ofthe channel scan comprises measuring the load occupancy rate of theplurality of channels, and the determining of the communications channelto be used comprises, when there is no channel having a load occupancyrate of 0.6, selecting a channel with an adjacent channel having alowest load occupancy rate.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein theperforming of the channel scan comprises measuring the load occupancyrate of the plurality of channels, and the determining of thecommunications channel to be used comprises, when there is more than onechannel with respective adjacent channels having a lowest load occupancyrate, selecting a channel having a greatest absolute value of signalstrength.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the performing of thechannel scan comprises measuring the load occupancy rate of theplurality of channels and the determining of the communications channelto be used comprises, when there is no channel having the load occupancyrate of 0%, selecting a channel with a greatest difference in a loadoccupancy rate from an adjacent channel.
 12. The method of claim 1,wherein the outputting, by the outdoor unit, of information on thedetermined communications channel to the plurality of indoor unitscomprises broadcasting, by the outdoor unit, the information on thedetermined communications channel to the plurality of indoor units apredetermined number of times.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein theperforming of the channel scan comprises measuring the load occupancyrate of the plurality of channels, and the determining of thecommunications channel to be used comprises using a highest loadoccupancy rate of each channel in results of the channel scans of theoutdoor unit and the plurality of indoor units as a representative loadoccupancy rate of a corresponding channel.
 14. The method of claim 1,further comprising setting, by the outdoor unit and the plurality ofindoor units, the determined communications channel for the particularnetwork group, wherein outputting, by the outdoor unit, information onthe determined communications channel to the plurality of indoor unitsincludes outputting a switching command to the plurality of indoor unitsto switch to the determined communications channel.